Fraa Jad

Overview

Fraa Jad is a senior fraa (male honorific) of the Thousanders (long-cycle order) at the Concent of Saunt Edhar (scholars' cloister). He favors first-principles reasoning and trims conjecture with a habitual caution he calls "the Rake." While traveling extramuros (outside the walls) with a small Peregrin (formal journey) company toward Bly's Butte, he examines evidence at Orolo's cell, infers that Orolo has gone north, and—after securing and destroying sensitive notes—quietly sends a trusted younger avout (cloistered scholar) to follow north, planning for the rest to continue toward Tredegarh.

Appearance and Traits

• Elderly, poised, and precise in language; often restates uncertainties explicitly.
• Capable of a resonant, low register sometimes described as "subsonic."
• Unflustered by unfamiliar praxes and tools, adopting them quickly when needed.
• Inclined to historical framing and gently ironic turns of phrase; skeptical of over-interpretation.

Roles and Actions

• Peregrin leadership: Keeps discussions grounded during the detour toward Bly's Butte and helps reorganize seating and vehicles as plans change.
• At Orolo's eyrie: Surveys a wall of leaves and phototypes, selects a few images of a large excavation for separate consideration, then orders Orolo's working leaves burned and confirms, on the spot, that Orolo has gone north.
• Ecba/Orithena dig recognition: When presented with phototypes of a large, ordered excavation, he is described as recognizing the site at a glance as the buried remains associated with the Temple of Orithena on Ecba; he goes out of his way to ensure that Erasmas keeps those images for later work.
• Gate invocation at Orithena: At the gate of the Temple of Orithena, Erasmas identifies him as "Fraa Jad, Millenarian," and states that Jad sent him to seek Orolo; this is part of the exchange preceding entry and highlights Jad's commissioning of the search.
• Route inference over the pole: Companions later note that Jad had already reasoned out the practical way to reach the far side of the world without documents by traveling north to the sledge ports and going over the pole—an insight that reframes the search for Orolo.
• On the visitor: Reviews a processed image of a vast icosahedral craft and its exterior geometric emblem; he adopts cautious labels (e.g., "the Cousins") while emphasizing the boundary between observation and speculation. In paraphrase, he also suggests that the craft's electrical systems might be susceptible to a burst from a field-inducing array, while others reply that the needed theorics are not commonly mastered.
• Edhar's waste cavern: Describes a sealed cavern beneath Edhar that holds nuclear waste cylinders and explains the long-term maintenance of thatched covers as a thatcher's avocation passed down among the Thousanders.
• Hospitality with monks: Accepts lodging at a mountain retreat of Bazian Orthodoxy, conversing in Orth and contributing a sustaining low drone at table prayer before dawn.
• Support for the northbound search: His money card is later used by Erasmas to purchase fuel, food, and warm clothing for the drive into the mountains in pursuit of Orolo.

Relationships

• With Fraa Erasmas: Treats the younger avout as a capable agent, privately directing him to go north in pursuit of Orolo and promising to help avert sanctions for lateness. Erasmas later reports using Jad's money card to outfit the journey and characterizes himself as "technically a Feral" for having let Jad "push" him into the detour. While recovering at sea, Erasmas reflects that Jad likely knew of the long-established migrant route over the pole and believes Jad did not intend to put him in mortal danger; he interprets any peril as misfortune or shifting conditions rather than design. When presented with a chance to travel a safer route instead, Erasmas explicitly invokes Jad's charge—calling him "the Millenarian who sent me"—and decides to continue the task rather than quit; this is presented as Erasmas's own reasoning and respect for Jad's sending.
• With traveling companions: Others defer to him as a Thousander; he moderates speculation and settles practical matters with few words.
• With extras: Speaks readily in Orth with extramuros allies and moves comfortably in their settings when it serves the work.

Current Status

Extramuros near the Deolater village by Bly's Butte, having examined Orolo's quarters and arranged the descent. Not present with the group driving into the mountains; Erasmas reports using Jad's funds to equip that northbound effort, while the main party is expected to continue toward Tredegarh.